Topic: How do you rate games?

With seemingly nothing much to do during school holidays, and feeling a bit directionless after finishing Majora's Mask yet again last night, but not knowing what to play next, I thought I might as well make a forum post! I did have a brief look through the various subforums to see whether something quite like this had been a previous topic of discussion, at least, recently, but since either my search skills are sorely lacking or it hasn't been talked about lately, here we go: How do you rate games?

The question came up for me with the recent article on the site about NintendoLife's 10/10 reviews since the site's inception (https://www.nintendolife.com/features/a-look-back-at-every-game-nintendo-life-scored-1010-over-20-years). I have had a few officially unofficial rating schemes of my own over the years, generally variants of the classic 10/10 system or its little sibling, the 5-star system, but of late my method is (in my not-at-all humble opinion) genius in its simplicity. When I stop playing a game, whether I've rolled credits, given up after only a few hours, or sunk an obscene amount of time into a post-game, I ask myself one question: Am I glad I played this game?

At first glance, it seems brutally black-and-white, too basic to be of any value in any way. At second and third glance, and beyond, it probably still seems that way. It works wonderfully for me, though, as it helps me recontextualize games beyond whether they are "good" or "bad", instead considering how they affected me and whether I am grateful to have had the experience of playing them.

Now, most games I enjoyed playing do probably end up with me replying to myself with the answer, "Yes, I am glad I played this game. What a stupid question." But it's not always so straightforward. For example, I look back at Hollow Knight with very little nostalgia and few good memories, having finally ended the game with a bitter taste in my mouth, but it revitalized my interest in Metroidvanias and even got me to try out a few Soulslikes, so for that, I am very glad I played it: I wouldn't say I enjoyed the game overall, but it broadened my horizons. The game's influence on my ability to appreciate other games proved greater than the game itself, and that made me glad.

It's all in my head, though. I don't log which games have which rating anywhere other than in amongst the dusty cobwebs of my brain. And so sometimes the answer to my basic question might shift if I think back on a game I once played from the perspective of who I am today.

So, how do you rate games? Do you keep a formal record of your ratings, messily scribbled in a tattered notebook or meticulously charted in a bespoke spreadsheet? Do you go back and reassess your ratings as time passes and your own tastes change? Do you even have any form of personal rating system for games, or do you play them without thinking about scores or the like?

I look forward to reading any replies and seeing the different perspectives of how other users experience and evaluate the games they play.

On games I only put my thoughts on it, although I have no longer updated the list... I have kind of better streak with fanfic / literature stuff.

I'm using a 7-point-rating though right now (so 1 to 7), which can be a bit weird for people. I don't tend to reassess my rating, but I did write down when I rated the thing, so when a certain amount of time has passed, I know I won't hold the rating as strongly tbh. It depends though, some of my 7/7 stuff tend to stick.

Thanks for your reply. I think that adding your thoughts on a game (or book, as you also do) can help give a rating much greater meaning than a simple number. How did you land on a 7-point system, if I might ask? I think that if I were to use a numbered system again, something like that with a clear midpoint to denote an average score would suit me better than a 1 to 10 scale where the average would actually be 5.5 (and my impression is that 1 to 10 is far more common than 0 to 10, which would allow for a more reasonable midpoint of 5).

@MyUsernameWasTaken an acquaintance in a discord server uses it, so I read through the reason and so on, and I found myself thinking that 7 point is actually perfect. Got enough points you can go granular, but doesn't have so much points that some of the points are just useless and you probably can't think of anything to add to that ranking.

After that is history, I uses 7 point and extoll its virtues when I can (like right now )

I used 0 to 10 with decimal 0.5 scale.
For example, I rated ACNH as 9/10, Dragon Quest Builders 2 = 9.5/10.

I use a 10 point system which is divided into 2 smaller parts: 5 points for execution and 5 points for personal enjoyment. Execution is how well I think the game is made and how well it achieves the developers' intentions. Personal enjoyment is just how much fun I had with the game.

The 5 points of each both sub-scores are as follows:

1 - Poor
2 - Flawed
3 - Average
4 - Good
5 - Amazing

For instance, I gave Pokemon Legends: Z-A a score of 7/10. I had an amazing time with the game, as I found its gameplay loop incredibly addictive, so it earned 5 points for personal enjoyment. That said, for Lumiose City's poor map design, the general underbakedness of many aspects of the game (we all know about those windows), and some other mechanical flaws, Z-A got only 2 points in execution. (Edit: Probably worth noting that this game is a bit of an outlier, as most games I review are more balanced in the disparity between both of these scores. For example, I just gave Silksong 5 for enjoyment and 4 for execution.)

I understand that this system isn't perfect though, as my ratings are definitely skewed by the fact that I play almost entirely above-average games, so I may be misjudging how points should be allotted in many cases.

I log them in NL, Deku Deals and IGN.

Do you go back and reassess your ratings as time passes and your own tastes change?

If I replay I reassess.

Do you even have any form of personal rating system for games, or do you play them without thinking about scores or the like?

Same as with movies and shows, the sites all have a "1-10" system, I simplify it to a 5-point system by only using "2-4-6-8-10".

I've found if I use 10 points, then very soon after I rate something, I can't remember if it was a 6 or 7 or 8, for example. But with 5 points it's easy to lock it in.